|
CHAPTER THREE: Abortion and Our Response
As Lydia Hsu walked to her car in the darkened parking lot she
had a vague uneasiness. She should have waited for the security
guard escort, but if she had she undoubtedly would have been late
for her meeting at the Garden Club. Hastily she unlocked the door,
yanked the car door open, jumped in and was trying to shove the
key in the ignition when a hand from the back seat covered her mouth
and jerked her head viciously into the head rest. "One sound
out of you, and you are dead", he said.
The next ten minutes would be seared into her brain forever. With
a knife at her throat, he sexually assaulted her in the back seat
of the car, beat her savagely, and left her for dead.
When she finally came to her senses she drove herself to the nearest
Emergency Room. Over the next few weeks the physical wounds would
heal. The emotional healing would take much longer. The nightmare
continued. Four weeks after the assault, the clinic confirmed her
worst fears. She was pregnant.
Surely God wouldn't demand that she carry this criminal's spawn
to term. The rape was terrible enough, but there was no way she
could endure the pregnancy. Her mind was numb but her heart felt
untold anguish as she drove herself to the abortion clinic.
Gary and Karen Goldberg were ecstatic. After four years of marriage,
Karen was pregnant. Gary would finish law school in six months.
The timing could not have been better. Karen had always wanted a
big family, but they had delayed till Gary would have a regular
paying job.
After her third prenatal visit Dr. Abrams called her at home. Could
she and Gary come to the office tomorrow at three to review her
recent test results? He would explain everything then.
Over the next few weeks ultrasound tests confirmed what the blood
tests had suggested. Their baby, if allowed to come to term, would
have severe neural tube defects. In layman's terms the child would
have an open spinal cord, hydrocephalus, mental retardation and
probably never walk in a normal manner. The burden that this child
would experience, and the pain the family would suffer would be
unbearable. The best thing would be to have an abortion. Dr. Abrams
gave them the names of two competent gynecologists. It would be
best for everyone.
Tom Frasier would never hurt anyone. He was not the kind to picket
abortion clinics. He felt saddened by the violence against abortion
providers. But he adamantly believed that abortion under any circumstance
was wrong.
Sally Jay was stunning. She had a vibrant personality, great looks,
and was smart as a whip, to boot. Within a week of her first Sunday
at church, she and Tom had spent three evenings together.
Things progressed rapidly, and Tom thanked God that he had sent
him this angelic woman as a friend and potential wife. He thought
about Sally constantly, and dreamed of their life together, perhaps
serving God overseas as missionaries.
When Tom proposed to Sally, she cried tears of joy and hugged him
tightly to herself. "Oh Tom," she exclaimed! "I love
you so much I could burst! But there is so much about me you still
don't know…"
The next few minutes changed everything for Tom. Sally? An abortion?
As Sally poured out the story of her life before Christ, Tom felt
heartsick. How could he ever forgive her? Why had God allowed him
to fall in love with a woman who had killed her own baby, a woman
he could never marry?
Two watershed Supreme Court cases in 1973 changed abortion from
a criminal act to a right protected by the constitution. The more
famous case was Roe v. Wade. Norma McCovey claimed she had been
raped (a statement she later revealed was a pure concoction), and
was pregnant. Texas law at that time allowed abortion only to save
the mother's life. Her suit, decided at the Supreme Court, established
that a woman had an unquestioned right to an abortion during the
first trimester, and after that, with possible restrictions by the
state.
Doe v. Bolton, decided the same day, blew the cracked door wide
open. Essentially, the court ruled that whenever the "life
and health" of the mother was in danger, abortion was legal.
And, they broadly defined "health" to include emotional
health, undue worry, stress or hardship. With these two decisions,
abortion essentially became legal, on demand, for almost any reason,
throughout the whole United States. Since that time over thirty
million abortions have been performed in the U. S.
A number of court cases followed over the years, alternately restricting
or liberalizing abortion parameters. State legislatures have mandated
minor guideline changes on a state-by-state basis, but the broad
general protection of abortion on demand has been upheld many times.
Thousands of books, articles, laws, and opinions have been published
on abortion since Roe and Doe. Many have taken a fairly firm "Life
begins at conception", pro-life stance. [This is where I believe
Scipture directs us.] Others, Christians and non-Christians, have
worked hard to "keep abortion legal", and protect women's
"right to choose". Even among conservatives, however,
many find cause to consider particular exceptions.
What about the fetus conceived by incest? What of the woman impregnated
through rape? Are there not some legitimate instances when the life
and health of the woman should receive preference to that of the
fetus? What about children who are doomed to severely limited and
painful lives? Is there no place for consideration of the quality
of life of the fetus/baby and the mother?
The Roman Catholic Church has stood firmly as one of the staunchest
proponents of the "life begins at conception" point of
view. Many main line protestant denominations, on the other hand,
have taken pro-choice positions. How can Christians come to such
divergent opinions, and what does the Bible say about this?
The word "abortion" is never use in the Bible. In fact,
the specific concept as used in this century is never discussed.
There are underlying Bible principles, however, that do help us
begin to frame our thoughts. Let's look at them together.
Scripture and Discussion Questions
Exodus 20:13
Jeremiah 1:5
Isaiah 49:1
Psalm 139:13-16
Psalm 51:5
Luke 7:36-50
John 4:7-26
John 8:1-11
1) Look at the first three references above. Does this make a compelling
argument against abortion? Why or why not?
2) Read the Psalm 139 passage. What does this tell you about the
beginning of life? Does this make things clearer or more confusing
for you?
3) Jesus went out of his ways to get to know and show love to sinners.
As you read the Luke passage, above, imagine the sinful woman as
a woman who has had an abortion, or more powerfully, imagine her
as a doctor who performs abortions. Do you sometimes find yourself
feeling judgmental and angry with the sinners, as opposed to the
sins? How can you love the sinner, but hate the sin of abortion?
4) Jesus again is reaching to a sinful woman in John 4. Many Christians
find it easy to feel moved for the dying babies, and rightly so,
but do you feel moved for the women who are contemplating an abortion
or who have had an abortion? Are you involved in helping the women
who have had abortions?
5) How many victims are there in an abortion?
6) John 8:1-11 describes a poignant scene. Does this have any bearing
on the abortion debate?
7) What other scriptural passages do you think of that need to be
considered here?
8) God has not only given us 1) Scripture, but 2) the Holy Spirit,
included under the heading of Experience, 3) Tradition, including
the creeds and counsel of other believers, and 4) Reason to decide
difficult issues. Do any of these other sources of wisdom help you
in addressing abortion?
9) Is autonomy a Biblical concept? Why do Americans value it so
highly? Is this true of people from every part of the world? We
must be careful to not confuse American cultural values with scriptural
principles. They are not always the same.
10) The Tom and Sally vignette is aimed at our self-righteousness.
A corollary Biblical passage is that of the prodigal son and his
self-righteous brother. As you read the parable of the prodigal,
do you identify with him or his older brother?
11) Does your church sponsor participants in Walk for Life or other
fund- and consciousness-raising events to aid centers for young
pregnant women?
Comments
1) The first vignette is intentionally graphic. While I certainly
do not advocate abortion I wanted everyone to feel the pain of this
victim, and perhaps have a little more empathy for her in making
this terrible choice.
2) Many rape victims feel ashamed and alone. Note that no mention
is made of Lydia's discussing her crisis with anyone. As there are
many victims of an abortion, there are also many victims of a rape.
3) The doctor tells Joe and Ellen that the pain the family would
face "would be unbearable". This is a value judgment.
God will never ask us to bear a burden too heavy for us. On the
other hand, if our brother or sister is in pain and we don't help
them bear their burden then we are part of that burden.
4) Dr. Abrams is fairly directive. Most Americans prefer their
doctors to be less assertive. These dissenters are often asserting
their own desire for autonomy. This may be an important good, or
may be essentially selfish, depending on motivation.
5) In armed conflicts throughout the ages, conquerors have raped
women. Women who have been raped are then often treated as "damaged
goods". We may find this abominable, yet we do the same thing
when we stereotype people based on their former life styles?
6) Scripture is very clear regarding murder, but is not as clear
regarding some of the possible exceptions to the abortion rule.
It is important to be clear on issues where you believe God has
given you convictions, but it is also important to be open to the
possibility that other Godly people may feel led in different ways.
7) Many Christians correctly fight abortion as evil destruction
of life. This chapter is not meant to downgrade this effort. But,
we can address abortion in a number of other Godly ways: mentoring
programs for young girls and young boys, post-abortion counseling,
adoption efforts, Christian pregnancy centers, and in-home care
for pregnant women to name a few.
8) One church planted hundreds of small white crosses on its front
lawn to commemorate the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. This gets back
to the earlier discussion about being the voice of the prophet versus
"all things to all men, so that we might win some". Discuss
the role of confrontation in social redemption.
PRAYER REQUESTS
As you close today's lesson, pray that God will always help you
to love sinners even as you hate sin. Pray that God will give you
wisdom as you think about significant ways that you can impact your
world for Christ when you are faced with the many complicated issues
surrounding abortion.
For Further Reading:
Francis J. Beckwith, Politically Correct Death-Answering Arguments
for Abortion Rights (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1993.)
Dr. Beckwith is an engaging author with a witty but well-reasoned
style. He methodically answers major Abortion Rights arguments and
then presents his own positive case for the Pro-Life position. He
includes useful appendices including a list of arguments for abortion,
followed by references from within the text in response.
J. P. Moreland and Scott B. Rae, Body & Soul-Human Nature &
The Crisis in Ethics (Downer's Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press,
2000.) While this work is not as easily read as Rae's earlier book,
Moral Choices, this will offer a deeper philosophical structure
for the Christian ethical thinker. Chapter seven addresses abortion
and its related topic, fetal research.
Harold O. J. Brown, The Sensate Culture-Western Civilization Between
Chaos and Transformation (Dallas, Texas: Word Publishing, 1996).
Dr. Brown looks reflectively at the twentieth century, and calls
all Christians to renewed prayer and hope. In chapter ten he discusses
the decline of medicine, and particularly its drift away from absolutes,
including Hippocrates' oath against abortion.
John F. Kilner, Nigel M. de S. Cameron, and David L. Schiedermayer,
eds., Bioethics and the Future of Medicine-a Christian Appraisal
(Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
1995). In this collection of enlightening essays, Part III has five
essays covering the post-abortion syndrome, abortifacient vaccines,
legal arguments regarding autonomy, and Biblical and moral thoughts
on abortion.
Francis J. Beckwith and Gregory Koukl, Relativism-Feet Firmly Planted
in Mid-Air
(Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1998). This book, dedicated
to the impact that relativism has on present day thought, is both
easily read and informative. Chapter thirteen focuses particularly
on how relativism impacts bioethical decision-making, particularly
abortion and euthanasia.
Scott B. Rae and Paul M. Cox, Bioethics-A Christian Approach in
a Pluralistic Age
(Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
1999). Offers a solid Biblical foundation for bioethical thinking.
Chapter four, "The Image of God and the Sacredness of Human
Life" focuses on abortion and its flip-side, euthanasia.
|
